AndroidGuys

9 Great pet tech gadgets for your four-legged furry loved ones

AndroidGuys

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June 13, 2016

We love our pets. They are apart of our families and make our lives so much more enriched and fulfilled with unconditional love. Whether its a bird, bunny rabbit, kitten or puppy, we love them all the same. It’s the main reason why the pet industry has exploded over the past decade where it was a $36B market in 2005, and $60B market in 2015.

With that growth, pet products have evolved from simple pet food, to raw, organic and even vegan. My own dog get to eat My Perfect Pet high-quality dog food from a local company in Poway, CA, because she relies on me to give her the best possible to keep her healthy and strong. We treat our pets like family and as such, tech companies have been creating connected devices to help us not only keep track, but to entertain our pets as well while we are away from them.

The pet industry’s connected pet items are as high tech as the stuff made for humans, it’s just that they don’t have the marketing power of larger companies to inform you of their latest inventions. That’s what we are for.

Here are nine great connected tech gadgets for your most precious loved ones.

Petcube Interactive Wi-Fi Pet Camera – $149 on sale at Amazon and Petcube

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View live video in HD with a wide angle lens
Chat and listen using 2-way audio
Exercise and play with a built-in laser toy
Customize access for friends and family
Capture and share photos and videos
Engage with pet lovers worldwide
Requires free Petcube Mobile App.
iOS and Android compatible. Android (4.0 or greater)

Petzi Treat Cam: Wi-Fi Pet Camera & Treat Dispenser – $169.99 at Amazon, Petzi, and Best Buy

A fun and easy way to connect with and treat your pet from anywhere
Watch the excitement on your pet’s face when you pop in
Dispense your pet’s favorite treat with the Petzi treat launcher for a big smile
Say hello to your pet through the high quality audio
Capture candid photos of your pet to save or share on your favorite social site

Feed and Go Smart Pet Feeder with Webcam & Wi-Fi – prices start at $249.99 at Amazon and feedandgo.com

The Only Smart Pet Feeder For Wet/Dry Food, Treats & Medication
Connects By Wi-Fi To Your Home Network In Under One Minute
Built In Webcam So You Can See Your Pet From Any Smartphone Inc iOS, Android & Windows
Set One Time Or Regular Schedules For Unlimited Feed and Go’s From One Profile
Each Compartment (There’s 6) Holds Up To An 8oz Cup Size, You Decide How Much To Feed. Great For Wet Or Dry Food, Or Even Treats*

Tractive GPS Pet Tracker – $89 at Amazon and Tractive

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Lightweighted & waterproof
Smallest GPS tracking device
Live positioning for dogs, cats, horses and other animals
Reliable real-time location tracking

Whistle Activity Monitor For Dogs – $79.95 at Amazon

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Healthy Habits – Track your dog’s activity, daily behavior, and long-term health trends.
Communication Hub – Use the app as a central hub to communicate with family, friends, dog walkers, and anyone caring for your pet.
Peace of Mind – Receive automatic updates about your dog’s day directly on your phone, whether you are together or apart.
Custom Goals – Set a daily activity goal for your dog based on age, breed, and weight.
Daily Timeline – Add photos and notes to capture your favorite moments and log food and medication notes to manage your pet’s health.
Simple Set Up – Connect the device to Bluetooth and Wi-Fi via mobile app, create your dog’s profile, set your dog’s daily goal and adventure on!
Mobile Compatibility – Whistle works with smartphones equipped with Bluetooth 4.0 and running Android 4.3 (Jelly Bean) or later, and iOS 6.0 or later.

Pet Tunes Bluetooth Speaker Preloaded with Calming Canine Music – $60 at Amazon

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Pre-loaded with Canine music
Bluetooth speaker pairs with digital devices
1GB Micro SD Card
USB charger-lasts 5-10 hours
Built-in repeat mode for all day play

Ultra Calmer – Dog Anxiety, Stress Relief Sonic Collar – $59.99 at Amazon and Ultra Calmer

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A solution for dogs that suffer from anxiety triggered by thunderstorms, fireworks, and noise phobias
Ultra Calmer is an alternative to using uncomfortable anxiety wrap for dogs
Pre-loaded with Ultra Calming music that calms dog anxious behaviors
Includes Magnetic USB charger, Water Resistant, Safe Volume
Pet Acoustics is the leader in science-based, frequency modified music proven to calm pets

Nest Cam – on sale for $149 at Amazon, Best Buy and Nest

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24/7 live video streaming. See your home on your phone in 1080p HD. And control Nest Cam from anywhere.
Alerts on your phone. Get motion and sound alerts so you now if anything happens.
Night vision done right. See the whole room at night – not just a limited spotlight view.
Talk & Listen. See your dog on the couch and tell him to get off.
Quick, easy setup. Plug in Nest Cam and download the Nest app to get started. No hub needed.

GoPro Fetch – $30 at Amazon, $60 at GoPro

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Capture the world from your dog’s point of view
Two mounting locations (back and chest) enable a variety of perspectives
Fully adjustable to fit dogs from 15 to 120 lbs (7 to 54 kg)
Chest mount is removable to accommodate smaller dogs
Padded at all adjustment points to ensure your pet’s comfort
Washable, water-friendly material holds up to swimming, splashing, mud and more
Quick release bases make attaching and removing the camera easy
Includes a camera tether to further secure your GoPro

Beme: A Snapchat and Vine hybrid with big ambitions (Review)

AndroidGuys

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June 13, 2016

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Overview:

Beme is a video sharing social network that aims to be the most natural and true to life social video sharing app on the market.

Developer: Beme Inc.

Cost: Free

Impressions:

Beme is a sort of hybridization of Snapchat and Vine. It’s a social network app about sharing short clips and videos, as well as reactions to other users content. The catch is, you can’t see what you’ve recorded until it’s published, and there is no editing. This makes every Beme video more natural and less gimmicky compared to some other social video apps. I will say that Beme clips have to try harder to be funny, and are generally less entertaining than Vines due to lack of editing abilities, but the more simple ‘slice of life’ feel to the clips is a welcome breath of fresh air.

Beme as an app is fairly straightforward. You simply hold the button for the camera you want to record on, point at what you want to record, and hold the button till you’re satisfied. The video is automatically uploaded and shared, and that’s when you can see what you’ve captured. It certainly takes a bit of practice to get right, but once you do it’s as easy as Snapchat to quickly record and share some great moments.

Beme also has a pretty solid community, and it’s steadily growing. There are categories in the Discover section, where you can see clips based on trending topics, or locations both local and international. You can follow friends, and send direct clips between them, as well as discover new trending users to follow. Scrolling through the categories grants you neat snippets of everyday life in places all over the world. Sure, some are hits and most are misses, but sometimes Beme managed to surprise me with a neat clip or an interesting event captured by a user somewhere.

Conclusion:

I can see Beme as a popular app for celebrities to adopt over Snapchat for it’s more natural and organic feel as opposed to Snapchat, but it has a long way to go before it can reach that kind of mass appeal. It certainly has the potential to get there, as even in the early days it has some solid content and is so simple to use that I can see it catching on quickly. I’m rooting for Beme in this crowded social sharing app world we live in, and I hope to see it succeed.

Download Beme from the Google Play Store

DoDo Wonderland: A solid, adorable endless runner (Review)

AndroidGuys

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June 13, 2016

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Overview:

DoDo Wonderland is a Jetpack-Joyride inspired endless runner, that has you in control of a cute dodo bird as you avoid obstacles and collect coins while getting as far as you can.

Developer: MYFREEAPPS.DE

Cost: Free (with ads)

Impressions:

DoDo Wonderland, or DoDo Superbird Endless Runner as it’s called in the Play store, is one of those addicting little runner games like Jetpack Joyride or Temple Run, with an infectious charm and simple mechanics that make it accessible to everyone. The art is cute, and appealing to the eye and the music is jaunty and uplifting, although I wish the song loop was a bit longer.

Gameplay is straightforward, tap the screen to make the bird rise, and release to let him fall. You can collect power ups like magnets to pull in coins, and a points multiplier, and you can kill the enemies on screen by landing on them to gain a bit of distance points as well. Simple, and accessible if not entirely original. The game doesn’t do enough to up the difficulty, however, and after a while it becomes very easy to get far without being hit once. I would have liked to see some more challenge thrown in once you pass a distance milestone, to add some gratification to beating high scores.

There are upgrades to acquire using the in-game coins, which boost your abilities and power up effectiveness, but they are rather pricey. Thankfully, there are no microtransactions to worry about, but the ads can be a bit intrusive at times, pulling you from the game to watch a video ad too often for my tastes.

Conclusion:

There isn’t too much to say about DoDo, it’s simple and innocent while still being fun and engaging. It’s certainly easier than similar games in it’s genre, and definitely appeals to kids more than anyone else. I’d certainly recommend this one for the kids’ tablets as a great alternative to Jetpack Joyride or Temple Run.

Download DoDo Wonderland from the Google Play Store.

Father’s Day Deals at HTC

News

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June 13, 2016

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Father’s day is Next Sunday, June 19th, and HTC has decided to celebrate it with some nice deals to help you thank your father for being such a good role model.

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If you buy the HTC 10 directly from HTC’s website, you get either a Jabra headset or HTC Pro Studios headphones(value no higher than $99). The HTC 10 is currently priced at $699
The UA HealthBox is $50 off, bringing it down to $350
If you don’t want the whole HealthBox, you can get the UA Band for $160, which is $20 off

These deals start today at midnight eastern time and end at 3:00 AM eastern time the day after Father’s day. The discounts only apply on orders less than $2,000. For more of the fine print on these deals, go to HTC’s Father’s Day sale website.

If you are up in the air about buying the HTC 10, read our review of it here. Remember the HTC 10 is the latest Android release from HTC and runs the latest version of Android, comes with great sound, and a superior camera. It’s a phone any father would surely love.

EasyAcc 28W Solar Charger: This should be in your charger inventory (Review)

AndroidGuys

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June 13, 2016

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Overview

We live in an ever-changing world where our electronic devices have become everyday necessities. While tech has enabled us to do things beyond our wildest imagination just a decade ago, the downside is portable devices need to be recharged. Most on a daily basis. For those of us considered power users, devices with terrible battery lives are the bane of our existence. This means we need to charge those devices all too frequently, and unfortunately, there isn’t always an outlet around to help us refuel. You could use a power bank, but those need charging too.

For the times we don’t have access to power banks or wall outlets, we have the EasyAcc 28W Solar Charger.

In the box

Portable solar charger
MicroUSB cable
Two carabiner clips
Backpack rope
Travel pouch
User manual

Review

A few years ago while on vacation, I was telling my wife I wished there was a solar charging battery case. I had horrible battery life and needed to charge my phone up to three times a day. While on vacation, this can prove to be quite the chore, and you can easily become a wall hugger. You could say I was excited to find out about the next best thing. Yes, I know I could have used a power bank, but I didn’t have one.

The EasyAcc 28W Solar Charger is a 28 watt, four-port USB charger that is compatible with most 5V input devices. It can harness the energy from the sun and can provide you with a full charge within two to three hours. It’s made up of a durable, weatherproof material that can handle just about any type of weather while still looking charming.

The pouch is equipped with the four-port charging station. The charging station is armed with two 2.4 amp Smart Charge ports and two one amp ports. The Smart Charge ports are designed to detect how much current your device needs to charge to prevent overcharging. In the event that your devices get too hot, the charger will pause until the battery cools down to prevent a nasty fire or other internal damage.

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Although there are four ports to hook devices up to, there isn’t much room inside the pouch. There’s enough room for two large smartphones, or a regular size tablet and small phone. There is room to throw in small Bluetooth headphones too, but you’re not getting too much else in there. Unless you’re sitting still for a while, don’t plan to charge a lot of devices on the go.

Four solar panels open to lay out flat to collect as much sunlight as possible. The more direct sunlight you get, the stronger the charge your charge will be. I would suggest tucking the pouch under the panels during hotter days to reduce heat exposure to your electronic devices.

Of course, there are many times when you’re not sitting still. If you’re always on the go, you can attach the solar charger to your backpack with the included clips or rope. Or you can get creative with the attachments, just make sure you maintain direct contact with the sun to get the best charge.

Conclusion

For those of you enjoying the great outdoors this summer, the EasyAcc 28W solar charger is a great option for staying powered and on the go when you’re away from an outlet. Even if you bring power banks on your camping trips, they still need charging. With the EasyAcc solar charger, you could charge your power bank during the day and use your power bank to charge your phones when the sun is down at night. For the price of $60, it is a solid investment for any outdoorsman or for those who wish to preserve the environment by harnessing the free energy from the sun.

Buy the EasyAcc 28W Solar Charger at Amazon for $59.99 with free shipping included.

Huawei P9 Review – an iPhone by any other OS would still taste of Apple

Donovan Jeska

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June 13, 2016

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Since I own and use a Huawei Nexus 6P as my daily driver, I find myself in the unique position of being able to compare these two phones – one crafted with direct input from Google, and one the result of Huawei when left to its own means – side by side. Many of my observations in this piece will be comparisons between the two, despite the piece as a whole being a review of the Huawei P9, specifically.

Build

The aluminum frame feels great in the hand. It’s got a slim profile and weighs next to nothing – a stark contrast to the Nexus 6P, which is bigger and noticeably heftier in-hand. Oddly, the P9 is only 0.3mm thinner than the 6P, but feels much smaller – perhaps because the 6P is 38 grams heavier. The P9 is so light, in fact, that when it slipped out of my pocket when I sat down and embedded itself in the couch cushion, I never noticed until I went to check it.

The downside to that all-aluminum body is that when the phone gets hot, it gets hot. A video call with my sister for a mere 15 minutes made the thing nigh-unholdable (that is not a word), lest I burn the fingerprints from the tips of my fingers.

Time to acknowledge the elephant in the room – the P9 looks just like an iPhone. From the shape, to the dimensions, to the random Torx screws on the bottom of the phone, it reeks of Apple design. I understand that people think Apple is the pinnacle of build quality, but ripping Apple’s aesthetic while using Google’s operating system seems so very wrong on so many levels.

Aside from looking like an iPhone, the rest of the phone is structured like a Nexus 6P – volume buttons and power button on the right side of the frame, fingerprint sensor on the back, Type-C USB on the bottom (although the headphone jack is on the bottom as well, not the top).

Screen

Quantitatively, the Nexus 6P is a superior screen – 0.5″ bigger on the diagonal (5.7″ AMOLED), a higher pixel density, and an oil resistant coating on top of corning Gorilla Glass 4 all work in the 6P’s favor. In practice, though I’ve found the P9’s display (5.2″ IPS LCD) to be equal or better in nearly every way.

The pixel density difference is not immediately obvious to the eye, and the supposed oleophobic coating on the 6P didn’t prevent it from picking up fingerprints at the same prodigious rate as the P9. The latter’s display is every bit as gorgeous as the former’s, despite the 6P’s AMOLED screen. In certain side-by-side instances, the colors on the P9 are even more vibrant. Either way, the P9’s screen is pretty damn good. I took a side-by-side shot of the two screens to show the difference – presented without comment.

Cameras

I’m gonna do this quick; like a bandaid, just tear it off – the P9’s camera blows the 6P out of the water. Badly. In all of my (amateur, highly unscientific and purely subjective) head-to-head comparisons, I preferred the P9 – both in terms of how easy it was to get the desired shot, and how the shot looked on its screen and on my computer. I’ve uploaded a gallery of images taken with the two phones for your perusal.

The P9’s camera software more robust than Google’s, and it seems more responsive. The options list for the P9’s camera is extensive, to say the least: Photo, Monochrome, “Beauty” mode, Video, HDR, Panorama, Nighjt Shot, Light Painting, Time-Lapse, Slow-Mo, Watermark, Audio Note, and Document Readjustment. Wow.

This software also features a pretty nifty feature that turns off the camera if you leave it open for too long without doing anything with it – this would undoubtedly save some accidental battery loss.

The focus of the P9 is far superior to the 6P’s, making taking close-up shots way easier to capture; take a look at the Lego closeup and the closeup of the gaming miniature to see what I’m talking about. Additionally, the shutter speed on the P9 seemed a lot snappier than the 6P, which was sluggish by comparison.

In terms of front facing cameras, the P9’s really picks up insane amounts of detail – to the point where I saw my own selfie and thought “ugh, dat skin tho.” In short, the P9’s selfie cam is straight up better. I video chatted a few times with the P9 as well to get a feel for if the quality was any better on the receiving end, but my partner in crime for those calls didn’t seem to notice a difference.

Battery Life

In terms of battery, the P9 performs about how you’d expect with a 3000mAH battery; I got less than a day of my usage, which is to say about 3 hours of screen on time streaming music, refreshing Twitter like mad and texting like crazy. For comparison, my Nexus 6P manages about 4 hours of screen-on time before I need to charge it. The P9 doesn’t quite have the same lasting power, but it’s also no chump. With some battery saving considerations, there’s no reason the battery couldn’t last most people until bed time.

The P9 does not support the 6P’s 3A charging speeds, but the smaller battery and Type-C USB port mean it still charges pretty quickly compared to other devices.

Data, Coverage, Etc.

It’s important to note that the P9 does not support CDMA bands, only GSM – which means Sprint and Verizon customers are out of luck in the US (note that it does support HSPA and LTE, however). My reception with my T-Mobile nano SIM was pretty flawless, with no connection drops and very good quality calls.

WiFi performed as expected – in my case, lots of drops and lag, because the internet in my neck of the woods is awful, and I need to yell at the AT&T guy again. At Starbucks, however, the WiFi was just fine.

Features

The fingerprint reader is arguably faster than the Nexus 6P’s, but I feel like the 6P’s registers my finger correctly more often – note that this may be because of the way I set up my fingerprint on the two devices, which has a margin of human error.

The speaker placement on the P9 isn’t ideal, especially in comparison to the front-facing dual speakers of the Nexus 6P. Holding the phone one-handed in my typical left-handed grip – index finger bracing the left side, middle finger supporting the back, pinky under the bottom of the frame – actually blocks the speaker, muffling the volume. When unimpeded by fat fingers, the volume can compete with the best of them, but the overall sound quality seems a bit hollow to me.

Firmware

Long story, short: if you like iOS’s launcher, or MIUI, this phone is for you. It eschews Google’s signature app drawer in favor of spreading each and every single icon of each and every single app you install on your homescreen. This, to me, results in way too many icons – especially if you start adding widgets.There are a number of cute options within the launcher: transition animations, auto-align icons, shake to align, and homescreen looping are among them.

In terms of performance, I ran into a number of jitters and hesitations when running around in the menus, but to its credit the P9 ran Android 6.0 admirably, and didn’t lag a whole lot; buttery smooth, for the most part. One area the P9 does struggle with, though, is the keyboard – I ran into a bunch of occasions where it would hesitate to input my keystrokes, resulting in many, many backtracks.

Final Thoughts

I had a really great time with this phone. It often felt as good, if not occasionally superior, to my Nexus 6P, especially in terms of how it felt in the hand. The launcher – and, indeed, Huawei’s modified OS in general – was not my bag, for I’m an AndroidGuy (I’m ashamed of that plug), not an Apple Guy.

Basic Spec Comparison

Phone: Huawei P9

Android Version: 6.0

Screen: 5.2″ IPS LCD

Resolution: 1080×1920 (401ppi)

CPU: HiSilicon 2.5ghz Octa-core

RAM: 3GB

Storage: 32GB internal (expandable)

Camera: 12mp duo camera

Battery: 3000mAh, Type C Charging

Price: 599.99 at Amazon

Phone: Huawei Nexus 6P

Android Version: 6.0

Screen: 5.7″ AMOLED

Resolution: 1440×2560 (518ppi)

CPU: 2Ghz Qualcomm Snapdragon 810

RAM: 3GB

Storage: Up to 128gb (nonexpandable)

Camera: 12.3mp

Battery: 3450mAh, Type C Charging

Price: 419.99-569.99 at Amazon

First half flagships: The best flagships for the first half of 2016

Matt Adams

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June 13, 2016

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The first half of 2016 is just about in the books and we’ve some exciting releases already this year for flagship phones. While some manufacturers have focussed on refining and improving its already excellent phones, others have gone in a completely new direction. Here are our picks for the best flagships released from January 1, 2016, until June 1, 2016.

#5: LG G5

LG went outside the box with its newest flagship device the G5. It gets high marks for trying to innovate, but less so for execution. Modular phones are more than likely where the industry is going to go- and LG tried to get there first. In order to bring modular design to the masses, LG implemented detachable modules which are found on the bottom of the device. Named “LG Friends”, the modules improve various aspects such as camera functionality or battery life.

However, there have been major issues with the phone. Reports of the bottom of the phone coming off way too easily are widespread, as are reports of a gap that shows up where the bottom of the phone connects with the rest of the body. The unibody metal design doesn’t feel like metal due to the coating technique that LG used and the software on the device received no major improvements. In fact, they removed one of the things that differentiate Android from iOS, the application tray. Now, it’s up to you to decide whether that’s an improvement or not, but it’s certainly different. It does get high marks for shipping with the latest version of Android and it continues to receive security patches.

LG saw success with the LG G4 and was hoping to change course and innovate with the G5. While the device did take some folks by surprise, it’s obvious that the G5 isn’t favored by many.

#4: Huawei P9

Huawei has been one of the biggest players in smartphones for a while, yet hasn’t become a household name in the United States due to its almost exclusively Asian sales. That all changed with the Nexus 6P which introduced the Chinese juggernaut to Android enthusiasts. Making a good impression on those who are most passionate about Android devices is a good way to build your reputation in a market you’re trying to enter. Huawei followed up the Nexus 6P with the P9, which found many raving reviews.

Released in April, the Huawei P9 packs an interesting set of specs. The screen isn’t a monster (5.2″) like it’s cousin, the Nexus 6P (5.7″). Huawei made the decision to go with a lower resolution display (1080P) than most flagships (2K) since it’s easier on the processor and the battery. The P9 is powered by a Krillin 955 processor that has quad-core 2.5GHz cortex A72 & quad-core 1.8GHz Cortex A53 cores to fly through any task. The 32GB model has 3GB of RAM and the 64GB model has 4GB of RAM and both feature a 12MP camera with Leica optics.

We’re still waiting to see if Huawei will make the P9 its second major release in the US or if they will continue to focus on Asian territories, but the message is clear: Huawei has nowhere to go but up.

Review: Huawei P9

#3: Xiaomi Mi5

Xiaomi is another Chinese smartphone maker that’s on the rise. As of the Q4 2015, Xiaomi trailed only Samsung, Apple, and the aforementioned Huawei in market share worldwide. This year Xiaomi blew our socks off with its excellent new flagship, the Mi5.

The Mi5 was one of the first phones to feature Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 820 processor, which powers many of today’s flagship devices (the P9 being notably absent from that list). You can buy multiple models of the Mi5, but the most popular version has so far been the versions with 3GB of RAM and either 32GB or 64GB of storage. There’s also a pro version with 4 GB of RAM and 128 GB of internal storage.

The Mi5 has a 5.15″ 1080P display, 3000mAh battery and a 16MP camera to round out the flagship’s specs. But, one of the biggest selling points of the Mi5? The price. It ranges from $370 for the 3/32GB mode all the way up to $415 for the 4/64GB model on Gearbest. That’s about 45% cheaper than the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge.

#2: HTC 10

HTC is back, or at least that’s what everyone is claiming. The Taiwanese giant had stumbled as of late with overall negative reviews of the HTC One M9 which weighed down the sales numbers for HTC last year. In fact, HTC has been in serious financial trouble recently which had us doubting how long the company would last. Could this be HTC’s last flagship?

If HTC is on the rocks, then it’ll be going out with a bang. Overwhelmingly positive reviews for the HTC 10 has us excited about the future of the company if it can continue to put out phones like this. The HTC 10 made a small redesign, dumping the front-facing Boomsound speakers for bottom-firing speakers, raising the screen size to 5.2″ and increasing the resolution to 2K. Additionally, the phone is faster and deals better with thermal throttling due to the new Snapdragon 820 processor.

But, what may be the biggest improvement is the camera. HTC has been bouncing around with exactly what its focus in camera technology would be. The HTC One M7 was released with only a 4MP ultra pixel camera which shocked many with its low resolution. The follow-up to the M7, the M8 saw a dual camera setup that in practice appeared to be little more than a gimmick. Last year’s HTC One M9 blew up the megapixel count to 20 MP, but the results stayed mediocre at best.

None of these cameras were stand-outs like we see on other flagships like the Galaxies and iPhones of the world. It was hard to take consistently good shots with all of them. HTC dialed it back this year and went with the same 12 MP camera we’re seeing in many of today’s flagships and results have been pretty positive. Our own Scott Webster said “We found the HTC 10 camera to be among the absolute best smartphone shooters we’ve ever tested. Time and again we were impressed with the shutter speed, focus, and colors.”

Review: HTC 10

#1: Samsung Galaxy S7

Despite its standard flagship price, the Samsung Galaxy S7 still reigns supreme this year. Samsung did the right thing last generation by redesigning its flagships to be more beautiful devices even though there were some major issues with them (battery life, lack of expandable storage). This year has brought us devices that received refinement instead of a complete redesign like last year, and Samsung absolutely knocked it out of the park with the Samsung Galaxy S7 and Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge.

What may be the biggest change to its early-year flagships is the software. Samsung seems to finally have gotten the memo about scaling back its TouchWiz skin. We’re now seeing more subtle color pallets, less bloat, and faster performance from TouchWiz, turning a negative into a positive. While it’s not stock, it has become one of the better Android skins out there today and Samsung has given customers many options to customize the software to their liking through a very impressive theme store and apps like

While it’s not stock, it has become one of the better Android skins out there today. Samsung has given customers many options to customize the software to their liking through a very impressive theme store and apps like Good Lock which alters functionality, as well as aesthetics.

Samsung also gave us back a few features that featured prominently in Galaxy S5 but were dropped for the Galaxy S6; water-resistance and expandable storage. The IP68 rating has been one of the biggest selling features for the Galaxy S7- featured prominently in television ads, and the return of expandable storage means that all three major US flagships so far this year (Galaxy S7, G5, and HTC 10) feature expandable storage. A trend we hope continues.

The Galaxy S7 gets the top spot due to its excellent performance, long-lasting battery life, detailed and vibrant camera, and fantastic build materials. If you’re looking to pick up a flagship phone, it’s hard to recommend anything else over the Samsung Galaxy S7.

Review: Samsung Galaxy S7, Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge

Steal This Look! 80’s Strikes Back

Tips & Tools

AndroidGuys

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June 13, 2016

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As some of you know we recently went back in time with one of our GET THIS LOOK posts. Back to a time that was totally rad where acid wash jeans and hair metal was all the rage.

As part of the 80’s Rad look we were introduced to a bodacious icon pack that featured 3,200 icons, wallpapers and widgets. Seeing these icons and widgets we were reminded an iconic movie: Tron. Today’s look builds off of some of that foundation, but with some slight variations. That’s right, the 80’s Strike Back!

Why pay for some of these apps?

You might put in a few bucks to get things rolling but you’ll be glad you did in the long run. The sheer level of configuration and customization behind a few of these titles means endless designs. If you’ve been doing the custom home screen stuff for a while, you may have already purchased some of these apps already.

What you’ll need

Action Launcher 3
Rad Pack Pro – 80’s Theme (icons, wallpapers, and widgets included)
Minimi Wallpaper

Settings:

Theme in Action Launcher set to custom
Quickbar set to search box
QuickPage enabled (optional)

Setup

Once you have these settings adjusted to your liking it’s time to dig into the wallpaper. Go into Minimi Wallpaper and then search for the Rocky Davis collection. There, you will find a nice collection featuring the Joker, Doctor Doom, Teen Wolf and more. Select which background you like and make sure you adjust it to the your screen. After that Action Launcher will take care of the color scheme.

Once you have picked your wallpaper it’s time to make use of the Rad Pro Icons. Go into Action Launcher setting to Display>Icon and select Rad Pro Icons. Make sure you look through the many widgets that Rad has because there’s plenty to choose from. Set your desktop grid to whatever you like.

What’s cool about this look is that with Action Launcher 3 you are given many ways for theming your phone. To me, the best feature is its auto theme ability. It’s able to pick up on your wallpaper and give you appropriate colors for your scheme automatically.

Slide out from right — Quickpage slide out from right

Then there are the two different slideouts from the left and right. Quickdrawer (which I leave turned off) houses all your apps, while sliding out from the right gives you the Quickpage. The Quickpage let’s you stash apps and widgets of your choice. There are too many things about Action Launcher to mention here but it really is the backbone of this look.

Between these three apps you are sure to have many different looks for the summer. If you’re really feeling ambitious or want a full customization, download Zedge. Surely you’ll discover a coordinating ringtone for the appropriate movie. When I have the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man rocking my background, I like to have the Ghostbusters theme as my ringtone.

If you wish to change the background colors of your search bar, Quickpage or Quickdraw, go to Quicktheme and select the items you want to change.

About Steal This Look

Here at Android Guys, we’re huge fans of changing the home screen around a bit and creating a new user experience for our Android device. In fact, we love it so much that we have an ongoing series of Steal This Look posts. In a nutshell we show you a new layout, app, widget, or icon set for your Android device and tell you which apps you’ll need to mimic the feel.

Some of these are a little easier to create than others and many of them can be tweaked to no end. The above details are but the ingredients to which you can create your own delicious Android dish; your results will vary. Which is awesome! If nothing else, this is a great way to discover new apps, widgets, icons, and more!

Rivers Casino Pittsburgh: Casino gaming & fun (review)

AndroidGuys

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June 13, 2016

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Overview

rivers-casino-16 Casinos are known for a lack of clocks and windows. They understand that once you are preoccupied with the sounds and lights of slot machines and gaming tables, you will lose track of time and hopefully, lose track of your cash.

It is strange to say it, but that is how playing Rivers Casino Pittsburgh, a casino gaming app, felt. If you have ever been to a Vegas casino, you will understand what I mean.

The app games felt exactly like their casino counterparts with all the flashing lights, sounds and bells and whistles announcing every win.

Developer: Rivers App Team
App link: Rivers Casino Pittsburgh
Cost: Free

Review

Upon launching the app, you are welcomed by a home screen that allows you to play casino games or checkout the services and amenities offered by the app creators, Rivers Casino in Pittsburgh, PA.

rivers-casino-17 Because there is a physical Rivers Casino in Pittsburgh, you can do more than just play games with the app. Once you create an account, you can check your messages, see the latest casino promotions, check your rewards, see what entertainment and specials are being offered at the casino or what food is being served at the restaurants.

Let’s play!

To launch the gaming machines, you click on the “Play for Fun” icon on top of the app. Once clicked, you have a choice of between a couple of unlocked games. The main gaming screen lets you know how many points you need to accumulate to unlock one of the next stages. In all, you can unlock 375 stages.

rivers-casino-02 — Pick from the unlocked games.

Gameplay is simple. You choose one of the unlocked games, enter how much to bet and then you play. Slot machine action is accompanied by typical gaming sounds: bells, whistles and, when playing the KISS game, guitars, bass and drums.

Once you have accumulated enough points, you can proceed to open an unlocked stage. Play differs slightly from game to game, so it’s up to the player’s preference.

Conclusion

If you like playing slots machines (and can decipher all the different ways to win), you will like Rivers Casino Pittsburgh. Casino players are the main demographic for this game so it makes sense that the game sponsors have tied the app to the physical location.

rivers-casino-14 The gaming is fun but also repetitive and limited; the main variance is how much you are willing to bet. Therefore, unless you just enjoy accumulating points for the fun of it, playing will also be limited. Once I got the gist of the app, I was done with it.

If I lived in Pittsburgh, then maybe I’d use it more.

Download and install Rivers Casino Pittsburgh from the Google Play Store.

The hottest Android apps and games around (June 10)

AndroidGuys

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June 12, 2016

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Wow, we have been doing this for 3 weeks already! Thanks for joining us for another round of: The hottest apps and games around! Where we look at some of the best apps of the week.

We’ve pulled the top 10 apps and games from across a number of charts on the Google Play and the Amazon Appstore. Not much has changed this week but there are a few new apps in each list.

Top 10 Free Apps and Games (Google Play)

Top Free Apps and Games (Amazon Appstore)

Top Paid Apps and Games (Google Play)

Top Paid Apps and Games (Amazon AppStore)

Minecraft – Pocket Edition $6.99
Plants vs. Zombies $0.99
Geometry Dash $1.99
Minecraft: Story Mode $2.99
Five Nights at Freddy’s $4.99
Phantasmat: The Endless Night Collector’s Edition (Full) $2.99
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 $2.99
Terraria $4.99
Five Nights at Freddy’s 4 $2.99 $2.99
PAW Patrol Pups Take Flight $3.30

AndroidGuys

News & Opinion Since 2007

Overview:

Impressions:

Conclusion:

Overview:

Impressions:

Conclusion:

Overview

In the box

Review

Conclusion

Build

Screen

Cameras

Battery Life

Data, Coverage, Etc.

Features

Firmware

Final Thoughts

Basic Spec Comparison

#5: LG G5

#4: Huawei P9

#3: Xiaomi Mi5

#2: HTC 10

#1: Samsung Galaxy S7

Why pay for some of these apps?

What you’ll need

Settings:

Setup

About Steal This Look

Overview

Review

Let’s play!

Conclusion

Top 10 Free Apps and Games (Google Play)

Top Free Apps and Games (Amazon Appstore)

Top Paid Apps and Games (Google Play)

Top Paid Apps and Games (Amazon AppStore)